People now spend at least 100 minutes online every day watching videos. The question for brands isn’t whether they should make video content, but which type of videos they should film. For many, the idea of an animated video is appealing, as it provides no limits when it comes to creativity. But should your business implement animated videos in its marketing efforts? We’ve got the lowdown with everything you need to know about animated videos, including the different types and their benefits. If you’d like support with creating an animated video from a video production company in London, then do get in contact with the Small Films team.
What is an animation video?
An animated video features original designs, drawings, illustrations or computer-generated effects designed with several artistic styles. Pixar is perhaps the most famous animation studio in the world, but you don’t need to make big-budget films to reap the benefits of animation.
Using animation marketing, your brand can strike a chord with audiences thanks to its ability to capture the imagination. By placing a video into a broader marketing campaign, you can promote your brand with some serious visual flair.
Videos using animation are becoming increasingly popular with businesses and are often used for different types of content. From animated product explainer videos to animated case studies, there are a variety of ways you can supercharge your marketing efforts with animated videos.
What are the benefits of animation videos?
Animated videos are particularly suited to modern media, as they offer a unique method of providing information in an entertaining way. You can use voiceovers, custom visual aids and visual metaphors all at once, turning complicated scenarios into easily digestible content that’s clear and concise.
It’s also easier to make animated videos reflect your brand, something that is imminently more difficult to achieve in other types of marketing. You can personalise the content, from the colour scheme to the aesthetics and include elements like your logo without any hassle. It’s even possible to conjure up animated characters to reflect your brand, giving your business a fun and emotive type of marketing strategy.
Expect the costs involved with animated videos to be lower than if you used real actors. They are often simpler to produce than live-action videos, meaning the resources required keep budgets down. The animator can create the world you envisage on a computer without restraint. For a short piece of content, you’ll likely pay significantly less than a live video.
Different types of animation videos
Animated explainer videos
Explainer videos come in many forms, including animated versions. They’re typically shorter videos designed to explain a product or service quickly and get your USP across. B2B companies often use animated explainer videos as they’re an accessible and fun way to show off products and services that may otherwise struggle to excite.
Emily Crisps crowdfunding video featuring animation
Whiteboard animation
With a whiteboard animation video, you can take complicated concepts and draw them out step by step. Doing so allows you to provide the viewer with a clear way to digest information. It’s also a concept people are familiar with, so the chances of capturing their attention is higher than other types of videos.
Live-action/animation mix
There may be times when you feel it’s necessary to create a live-action video and include animation elements. These types of videos are more common in feature films than brand marketing, but it’s still something worth exploring. They tend to be successful because they combine the familiarity of live-action with the imagination of animation.
A Small Films animation for e-commerce brand Rex London
Motion graphics
Motion graphic animations are another handy way for companies to showcase complex products and services, such as in the tech industry. The clever use of moving graphics helps illustrate a message through colourful, dynamic and vivid content.
3D animation
Using 3D animation makes it easier for some audiences to engage. The action can rotate around and zoom in and out, allowing for a more immersive feel. Out of all of the video animation types, 3D animation can be one of the most expensive to create.
Stop Motion Video Style
Stop Motion Video Style uses a specific animation and implements a technique of photographing an object as it’s moved slightly. The result is the illusion of motion when played in real-time.
Animated case study
Case studies are a great way to give people more information about your company using real-world examples. Many case studies are written, but a growing number are appearing in video form and making use of animation to enhance the content. An animated case study may be one of the few times you combine live-action shots with animation.
First and foremost, you want to work with a video animation company that has a track record. Ask to see samples of their work and schedule a chat where you can get a better idea about how they work.
Be clear about your needs, eg turnover times, the type of video you want and your budget. That way the video animation company provides an indication of the scope of the work and everything required.
Don’t be afraid to ask around either. Speak to contacts to see if they’ve worked with animation companies before and ask if they have any recommendations. You can also talk to us here at Small Films, and we can help bring your video animation concept to life.
Final words: another world with animation
Using video animation to market your products and services to customers can add another dynamic to your brand. An animated video offers you the chance to think outside the box and create a video that is intriguing and enquiring about your business.
In an era where we are surrounded by limitless content, how do brands continue to stand out on social media and create those ‘thumb-stopping’ moments? When designing videos for social, we need to consider how the user consumes content. Are they scrolling TikTok on the bus? Watching a quick how-to video in between meetings? Or are they relaxing on the sofa watching a vlog from their favourite influencer? These examples tap into the three types of consumer behaviour. On-the-go – a short attention span with what they’re watching. Lean Forward – More actively engaged with the video, likely to comment or share the content. Lean Back – Watching in a planned environment, with a longer attention span.
By matching your video content on your social channels to your users’ three states, you’ll make better connections with your audience. They’ll choose the content that complements whether they’re on-the-go, leaning forward or leaning back – helping to keep your voice heard in a crowded marketplace.
Types of on-the-go video content
6 – 15 second Facebook/Instagram/YouTube adverts Instagram reels Gifs Instagram story TikTok Cinemagraphs
Small Film’s 6 second Facebook advert for Mackie’s ice cream
Designing creatives for on-the-go moments
Keep it a short (under 1 minute) impactful video that captures attention quickly.
Design for vertical or square – people rarely turn their phone sideways when on-the-go and landscape ratio videos don’t take up as much space in their social feed.
Establish the context upfront and grab their attention as quickly as possible.
Integrate branding in the first 3 seconds.
Deliver your message in 10 seconds or less.
Types of lean forward content
Testimonials Explainer videos How-to videos Behind the scenes
Designing creatives for lean forward moments
Design for sound on and off.
Deliver your message in the first minute.
Include CTAs where necessary.
Be succinct and to the point.
Take your viewers on a quick journey using concise storytelling.
Types of lean back content
Vlogs Live broadcasts Instagram Live Documentary-style videos Long-form branded content YouTube shorts
Designing creatives for lean back content
Create stories that resonate.
Design for sound-on.
Design for horizontal viewing.
Indulge the audience with great storytelling.
Thanks to smartphones, you can now reach your customers wherever they are 24/7 – and there’s no better platform to do that than social media. Remember that your customers won’t always be in the right frame of mind to engage in your video content. That’s why it’s essential to have a mix of different content of different lengths and styles that they can enjoy, whatever they are doing. So whether they are time poor and want a quick video fix or whether they are ready to indulge in some long-form video content, you can provide them with the right videos to excite and delight them.
If you would like support creating a video for your social channels then do get in contact with the Small Films team – we’d love to help.
Animation is such a powerful tool for your business. When it comes to creating engaging content, using animation is a solid investment for your company. At Small Films, we’ve been delivering animations for years and have seen the incredible success these styles of films bring to brands.
Our modern culture turns to the internet when we need to learn. Don’t know how to do something? Somebody out there must have made a video about it, right? The videos we consume to understand a particular product or service better are called explainer videos. They’re an awesome way to give your audience quick information and present yourself as an expert in your field. They also help to gain people’s trust – so your company will be regarded with increased confidence.
Nobody wants to be confronted with a wall of text explaining why your company has a good culture and ethics or that your protein water is the best in the business. Instead, an animated explainer video allows people to understand who you are with minimal effort. Because, let’s face it, people don’t have the time to actively learn about who you are; they want to be spoon-fed with valuable information.
So, what exactly is an animated explainer video?
An animated explainer video will describe your product or service through animation. This might be via 2D, 3D, character animation or motion graphics and will be a way to show the benefits of your offering concisely. Animation is so powerful because it can explain complex ideas simply, without the need for expensive film shoots or long-distance travel. Check out our extended blog on ‘what is an animated explainer video’ to learn more about this film style.
Watch the animated product explainer video we did for Blossm
5 reasons why you should use animated explainer videos:
● They show a problem and a solution
A consumer wants to know how you can solve their problem. If a video can show a linear narrative in which somebody relatable to themselves gets their problem solved, a consumer is far more likely to become infatuated with your company.
● They are approachable
Animation is probably one of the more challenging forms of media to create. Yet, it is the easiest form to consume. People will be far more likely to watch a video about who you are or what you sell rather than read about it.
● Show your brand personality
Does your company have a wicked work culture that everybody else should know about? Are your ethics well aligned with your audience’s wants, and do you have a brand ahead of its time? Use your animated explainer video as a chance to show your brand’s personality.
● They’re multifaceted
Your video can be posted on YouTube or Vimeo. It can then be relayed through your social media platforms. It can be embedded on your website. It can be sent out via an email marketing campaign. Once you have the video, there is a multitude of ways you can use it.
● Explainer videos can help improve your SEO
Google is constantly trying to figure out why you should be ranked number 1. You need to show Google that you are the top expert in your industry and have information others desperately need. Explainer videos optimised for search will help your website be found by users looking for your product or service.
Explainer videos will add a great deal of value to your website and help highlight why a customer should buy from you. They’ll improve conversions and offer an incredible return on investment.
At Small Films, we will work with you to discover the best animation style that fits your video project, tone of voice, and goals. We’ll help write the script, storyboard it, and our talented bunch of animators will bring your project to life.
If you’re looking for an animated explainer video company, then do get in touch
Across the past few years, there has been an explosion of gin brands in the UK. And it’s not stopping any time soon. Distilleries are popping up across the land, and we’re not only seeing new tasty spirits appearing but some awesome marketing to boot. Imaginative branding, purposeful collaborations and Instragrammable pop-ups are just a few of the activities going on, but which gin brands do the Small Films team think are truly nailing their marketing right now? Let’s check them out.
58 Gin is a slick operation. Just one sniff around their website, and you can see they have been featured in GQ, won multiple awards and are running a highly successful gin school in Haggerston. Positioning themselves as an eco-conscious brand, they produce gins out of the apples too wonky to be sold in the supermarket and sloes that have been foraged for their seasonal sloe gin. They also market a ‘make your own gin’ offering – a great way to build brand advocates.
With its instantly recognisable bottle, Silent Pool is a citrusy gin made in Surrey. They are absolutely nailing their email marketing strategy with engaging ways to build their email list (a downloadable cocktail book, plus offers and promotions). This gin brand knows how to put its name out there. Whether they’re creating a Silent Pool bar, virtual cocktail classes, tasting tours or pop-up gin bars at events – there’s a bit of something for everyone.
One of the most beautiful bottle designs on the market, One Gin, is based in the leafy Richmond-upon-Thames. Set up by the team behind One Brand (known for One Water who fund clean water projects), One Gin is their first step into the world of spirits. Donating 10% of their profits to sustainable water programmes in poor communities, this is a brand with a great story and a bigger purpose. Their social feeds have a great mix of brand collaborations, cocktail recipe ideas and behind the scenes content (including a stint on BBC’s Saturday Kitchen), whilst also highlighting the importance of their clean water programmes.
>> If you’re looking for a video production company in London who can support you with video content for your brand marketing, do get in touch.
Another gin which you’d almost buy just for the bottle, Jarrold’s, is a London dry gin distilled in West Sussex. Persian limes, which are a quintessential flavour of the Iranian kitchen, are a key component of this gin, giving it its citrusy punch without bitterness. Their social media does a great job of behind the scenes content, so you really understand that this is small-batch gin made with love. No large-scale faceless factory set-up here. Their branding is on point, from the labels on their bottles, right through to their website design.
>> Looking for a food videographer? Here at Small Films, we’ve got you covered. Just drop us a line, we’d love to help.
You know you’re onto a good thing when you land on the Twisted Nose website. Full of all the trust signals that this is a rocking gin (awards, customer reviews and an excellent return policy), you can’t help but want to buy a bottle (especially when it has a World’s Best Gin Design trophy). Their social media is an excellent mix of G&T snaps, cocktail recipes, competitions and discounts. Across the years they’ve also done some notable brand collaborations with the likes of Tunworth cheese, Coates & Seeley and luxury hotel, Lainston House.
East London Gin has nailed their fun and cheeky tone of voice to a tee. Having gone through a rebrand in late 2020, they’ve taken their look from one which was fairly traditional, to one with packets of personality. Their recent collab with Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a stroke of genius. Celebrating the botanicals and the bees that make this gin what it is, this is a collaboration with a story behind it. Head over to their Instagram and you’ll see a carefully curated grid, packed full of beautiful product photography and their brand’s personality shining through.
This gin is steeped in tradition, with a story that goes back to 1863. Run by the Hayman family in Balham, the distillery is an impressive space, where you can take part in tours, masterclasses and, one that we’d love to attend, the ‘ginema’. Everything about how Hayman’s Gin positions its brand oozes quality and experience, from the beautifully laid out website to the perfectly thought out design of their bottle. The marketing of the gin flavour combos is excellent – who wouldn’t want to try a peach & rose gin slushie with pink lemonade!
We’re not just gin lovers at Small Films, we also make pretty cool films. We’ve shot videos for the likes of Aldi, Charlie Bigham’s and Lucky Saint beer and so we know a thing or two about what makes people salivate over your food or drink product. We’re always at the end of the phone so just give us a shout if you’d like us to help with your next food videography project.
Animated explainer videos are an excellent way for a business to attract clients in a creative, eye-catching and informative way.
What is an Explainer Video?
Explainer videos are usually short videos that are used for marketing or selling a product or service. Explainer videos highlight the key features and benefits of these products/services to encourage why a customer should buy them, so they’re a great style of video to use if your product or service is complicated to understand. They are used in multiple ways, such as on an e-commerce site, in Facebook ads or by the new business team to help quicken the sales cycle.
The Benefits of an Animated Explainer Video
Not only are animated explainer videos a popular choice, but they don’t require extensive production or travel, making them easier to create and often more cost-effective. An animated explainer video doesn’t need pre-shot footage, so they’re a great way to bring any concept to life.
Animation is a great way to get creative with your video. It can be colourful, vibrant and unique – helping to make your brand stand out. With animated explainer videos, you also have access to various styles, from character animation to mixed media – allowing you to choose which best fits your brand. For example, a company like Innocent often uses illustrators for their animations to capture their playful personality, whilst Accenture uses 2D motion graphics to explain their services clearly.
Animated explainer videos can come in a variety of styles and functions:
2D Animated Character Videos Animated videos are pretty easy on the eye, especially when you have a nice simple animated character telling you a story. It’s engaging and, if done right, will put the right message across.
2D Motion Graphics With 2D motion graphics, you don’t need an emotional/engaging story. Due to the graphics being the exciting part, you can just jump straight right into the relevant information required.
Whiteboard Animation This type is simple and can gain the attention of both a visual and text learner. If done right, it can be a real winner of an animated explainer video.
3D Animation Video 3D animation is a more advanced style, where features can be made more realistic. However, this can be expensive to create compared to 2D animation but is definitely worth the money.
The videos should be kept simple, refined down to only 3-5 messages
Start with a simple script and work your way from there.
Let someone who doesn’t know the industry watch your video – this way, you can see if people will understand your messages and what you need to improve on.
At Small Films, we can take your project and create something outstanding from just a seed of an idea. We’ll support you with everything, from writing the script, creating storyboards, animating and editing. Give us a bell if you’d like to chat your project through.
Using a video production service can add another layer to your content and help get eyes focusing on your brand. With killer video production and top-notch editing, you can expect a slick video that hits all the right notes for your customers. But how do you know which video production services are well-suited to grow your business? This Small Films guide details the best video services available and how they can help your brand. So if you’d like support from a video production company in London, then do give us a bell.
Explainer videos are a great way to tell people about your products and services. They often sit on your website homepage and surmise your business offering in just a couple of minutes. Explainer videos can also be helpful across other platforms, such as social media, blog posts and landing pages. With people having an average attention span of just eight seconds, explainer videos are a great way to cut through the noise and keep viewers engaged. An excellent explainer video script and sharply-shot video can make your video stand out from the crowd and get audiences to make a buying decision.
There’s nothing better than a recommendation, especially when it comes from previous customers who have used your business and loved the results. Many companies have a testimonials page on their website but tend to use a quote from a customer with just a couple of sentences that don’t really delve into the experience.
With a customer testimonial video, you can market your business in a way that engages audiences and increases sales. Videos are more personable than reading text as you’re watching a live version of someone providing their opinion. You can implement a testimonial to showcase the value of your product or service in video review form, adding more vibrancy to the testimonial than if it were written text.
Branded videos are sometimes referred to as “corporate films” or “company story videos”, and they help sell the idea of your brand. They typically last between one and three minutes and convey the culture and essence of your brand, helping people buy into the core ethos that your business stands for.
A well-shot branded video can help customers become more familiar with your business while condensing the company USP into an easily understandable message. The best-branded films often have excellent narration or tell a story using interviews. Regardless of the approach, the goal should always be the same: give your customers a clear snapshot of your business in the quickest, simplest and least confusing way possible.
If you think there might be confusion overusing your product or service, a how-to video can give customers the insight they need to get the most out of your offering. These videos are informational and focus on ensuring that customers are clear on using your services.
A how-to video Small Films produced for Plenish
A food and beverage brand might use a how-to video to create recipes, while a software company could use them to show people how to open an account and use the service. While these videos are informational in their nature, they also do a good job from a marketing perspective. That’s because you’re giving customers free content while providing genuine value.
Any company that sells its product online needs great product videos. This type of content is for point-of-purchase designed to help people make faster buying decisions. They sell items while giving shoppers valuable information about a product.
A product video we shot for Aldi
A great eCommerce video tells the product’s story, targets the right audience, showcases a brand’s identity and taps into the buyer’s emotions. The best video production companies use all of these elements along with excellent story-telling techniques to drive sales with high-end e-commerce videos.
A great video production service company goes one step further than creating excellent content. They also provide marketing tips, advising you on the best way to utilise the final product and get as much as possible out of the video.
They will be able to give you advice on how to market the video, from advertising on platforms like YouTube to how to break videos up into segments and use them on different platforms. Ultimately, a video production company will create top-notch content – but they’ll also have expertise in helping you make that content a success.
Growing your business with video production
The best video production companies can film different types of content, offering you a range of services to grow your business in the process. All that’s left for you to do is find one that’s a good fit and get working on video content that will increase your bottom line.
Video rules the roost when it comes to marketing, and it’s set to account for 82% of global internet traffic by 2022. Whether you’re a pro at using videos for your marketing efforts or still a newbie, there are many benefits a video production company can bring to the table. From expertise and know-how to high-quality results, going down the professional route can do wonders for your business.
But you want to hire the right experts and ensure you don’t get ripped off in the process. Here at Small Films, we’re bringing you anything and everything you need to know about working with a professional video production company, so you’re not left thinking you got a bad deal.
Don’t go for the cheapest option.
Sure, we all want to save money, and there are budget requirements that need meeting. But scrimping on your video production company hire shouldn’t be where you look to cut costs. That’s not to say you need to spend an arm and a leg but, more often than not, the cheapest solutions can leave you disappointed.
There is no set price regarding how much you should pay (though a decent ballpark figure is between £2,5000 – £5,000). Really, it comes down to the previous work completed by the video company, how much they understand your project and the general vibe you get from conversations with them.
One thing you should definitely do is stay away from automatic video tools, at least in the very beginning. They are available at minimal cost but churn out general videos that miss the core elements of your brand.
If you want high-quality video production, then the company hired needs to carry high-tech equipment. It’s true that technology is evolving, and you can do some pretty impressive things on an iPhone these days, but great marketing videos are filmed with excellent equipment.
Knowing which equipment a video production company uses can be tricky if you don’t know about camera gear. That’s why you should ask them to give you the rundown on what they use when shooting and editing. You can always research the cameras after the initial chats and watch and read online reviews.
The best video production companies use great equipment, but it’s still worth asking the question. After all, if they use high-level gear, they won’t have any issues giving you info on their equipment.
Weigh up the pros and cons of local hires versus further away
Do you hire a local, London video production company or a team further away? There is no right or wrong answer here, but the closer they are, the easier it is to get in touch with them, plus everything generally runs more smoothly.
If your business is located in a rural area, it might be harder to find nearby talent, and you’ll probably need to look towards the nearest city. For example, a Hertfordshire-based business may look for a video production company in London to create their videos.
Big-city companies tend to be more expensive, but many of the most sought-after ones are based in larger cities like London. Essentially, it comes down to doing the research and speaking to several video production companies before deciding.
Not checking credentials
When looking for a video production company, it should go without saying that you check their credentials. Ask for case studies that back up the quality of their work and see if they have valid customer testimonials.
Look at example work that matches your requirements, and check things like setup, team size and location. Don’t just fall for a snazzy sizzle reel, either. As good as they may look, it’s essentially a slickly edited highlight reel that provides a quick overview of a company’s work. That’s not to say you shouldn’t look at the sizzle reel – just make sure you get the other credentials to get a better overview of the company’s quality.
Go deeper than the video.
Obviously, the most crucial aspect of a video production company is its ability to film great content. But it’s worth asking them about their knowledge of all things digital marketing. After all, if they’re a studio that creates content for brands, they should know a thing or two about how to market the final version.
Look for companies who go big on marketing tips and offer advice on the best ways to maximise your content. Video production companies that can provide marketing suggestions show their knowledge and can offer support beyond video production areas.
Avoiding getting ripped off by a video production company
Being thorough and doing your research will reduce the chances of getting ripped off by a video production company and ending up with a video you’re not happy with. Take your time, and don’t hire anyone until you feel completely confident in any potential working relationship. Do that, and the chances of you working with a high-quality video production company that creates great content for you will be much higher.
When looking to promote your business, there are a wide variety of types of content that you can create that can work for your business or brand. Product explainer videos are an amazing way to give and indepth view of your product, whilst a ‘how-to’ video is a great way to give your customers valuable content. In this article we cover the different types of videos, the benefits they can give your business and how they can be used to promote your brand. If you are looking for a video production company for your next video project then do get in touch.
Brand Films
Lets start by talking about “Brand Films”. Another way to define these would be “Company Story Videos”, “Corporate Videos” or “Homepage Videos”. Generally speaking this is the company story film that communicates who you are and what you do in a nutshell.
Sock Shop Brand Film
Usually these films tend to be 1 – 3 minutes long. Depending on the nature of your business, the style can vary tremendously. If a large brand like Nike creates a brand film, its inevitably going to be highly ambitious, emotive and create a splash. Nike’s story is long and varied so their brand film will be a statement of where they are right now and their vision for the future. If you are a smaller business with a more modest budget, then a brand film can be a really great way to quickly explain your product or service.
Brand Films are probably one of the best projects to embark on before doing anything else. In the same way that most businesses focus on tarting up their shop windows by creating a compelling website, colourful social media channels and glossy print assets, so too does the Brand Film help potential customers understand the business better. Its also a great exercise in condensing your company’s USP into a simple to understand piece of comms. Unlike a website, where you can indulge yourself by including all the great things about your business and endless detail about the services you provide, a brand film forces you to strip out all the unnecessary detail to the point where you have the bare bones of what is most important to your customers.
Brand Films are often either narrated by a voice-over artist or tell a story using interviews with people. When you write a script that needs to be only 2 minutes long, you soon see how little information you can include. For customers, its the quickest, simplest and least confusing way to get a clear snapshot of your business. There is no hard and fast rule about the best way to structure a brand film but the best ones in my view, do more than just impart information. They make the viewer feel something. Think about how you can stir your viewers with your content. This is your opportunity to absolutely nail your story.
Product explainer videos are used in a very similar way to a brand film but serve to unpack the benefits of a particular product. These types of films are gaining more and more traction as their popularity with customers increases. Product explainers will often sit on a company’s website but can also be used very effectively on e-commerce platforms like Amazon.
Aldi Product Explainer Video
Customer’s are becoming increasingly mistrustful of buying from brands online as fake customer reviews have skyrocketed in recent years. E-commerce is booming but people miss the opportunity to enter a store and see the item in person, to assess the quality and check it fits their expectations. Photos can be incredibly misleading and its hard to judge the look and feel of a product in a 2D world. When you create videos of that item, it suddenly brings it to life for the viewer and helps them to make an informed decision. This not only leads to more purchases but increased customer trust and less returns.
Product explainers, unsurprisingly are highly focused on the product itself so the story that’s being told is about how that product can help the customer. From a style perspective, they can be live action or animation depending on the type of product. A niche product from a SAAS company might be easier to explain using animation where a luxury chocolate would sell itself better using live action.
This is a catch all for any piece of content that answers a customers problem. These are usually tips and tricks that help people out in their daily lives. Typically they are related to the product or service you offer but are not advertorial in nature. Your brand is included as part of the film but you aren’t shoving it down people’s throats.
Typical how-to videos include recipe videos that many food and drink brands will create that makes use of their product in an interesting way. For example, Baileys often create recipe content that shows on the “Tasty” Facebook channel. How-to videos can be highly practical like hardware store B&Q’s DIY series they run on YouTube that shows you how to do your own home improvements. In the B2B world, how-to videos could be webinars that educate about a particular discipline like sales, leadership or business finance. These kinds of videos do phenomenally well as a marketing tool because you are giving away content for free. You are providing value to people without asking for anything in return so it gets you on their radar and wins their appreciation.
B&Q ‘How-to’ videos
One of the best ways to discover what kind of how-to videos you could create for your brand is to simply look at search volumes on Google or YouTube. What answers are people looking for? There’s a great tool called www.answerthepublic.com which can help with ideas. Even just typing into Google “How do I [input activity]” and then scrolling down through the results until you find Google’s “People Also Asked” box will give you lots of other ideas and suggestions. Once you know what people are asking then you can create content around that question. As YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google, there’s a good chance of getting ranked highly with video content.
Case study videos are probably one of the most underused and most effective types of content a brand can create. They enable you to create the right narrative around your brand and help tremendously with customer trust. Its far too easy to set yourself up as a company these days with a simple website and a thin veneer of authenticity. There are so many “so called experts”, dodgy e-commerce sites and fake reviews that today’s customer is highly cynical of brand behaviour and also mistrustful of any promises made to them by businesses. Case studies work in two fantastic ways. There are probably more but I’ll focus on two for now. When you create a case study video featuring one of your customers talking about your business, it validates your product or service and provides the ultimate peer review. Everyone wants to be referred to a product or service by someone they trust and case study videos can do that. If you are a B2B business then put your customers on camera. Get them to talk about the problem you solved, how easy it was to work with you and the outcome you delivered.
You can put those videos on your website to validate your offering and your team can use them as part of their sales and marketing outreach. If you are a B2C business then use case studies via social media and as a means of advertising to new customers.
Secondly, use case studies to go deeper into the story of your company and to highlight aspects of what you do that you customers might not know about. For the food brands we work with, they know that origin and provenance is important to their customers. Where does their food come from? So creating case studies with the farmers in the field or the artisan food producers is a great way to enhance the perceived value of that food item. What have you done as a business that you are proud of? What parts of your offering might be interesting to your customers? Perhaps you have partnered with another organisation to do something noteworthy? Or your team have raised money for charity through a fun run? These sorts of vignettes help to highlight the purpose behind your brand and make customers feel aligned to your goals.
Adverts
I’ve talked a lot about the difficulty of reaching your customers when we’re all being bombarded by so many commercial messages every day. Advertising to your customers is an important part of any marketing strategy and its not a technique that will ever go away. In fact, with continuing advances in technology and processing big data, our ability to reach specific customers wherever they are is getting better and better. We can now be highly targeted to individuals and speak directly to them. This is no more evident than in election campaigns where thousands of advert variations are shown to different people across social media so the political party can create resonance with them. In the last general election, the Conservatives showed thousands of different adverts compared to Labour’s hundreds. But just remember that now that your customers are spending so much of their time online, they are starting to get frustrated with online advertising. The onslaught is increasing every day and for every well intentioned, well positioned advert that offers value to your customer, there’s a dozen bad quality, irrelevant adverts that are interrupting their viewing experience. There’s a reason that 50% of people in the UK admit to using some form of ad blocker.
Mackie’s Facebook Advert
Advertising works but creating resonance with your customers becomes all the more important. We’ve talked about understanding consumer behaviour and the different ways people absorb content. Try to ensure you don’t interrupt people’s online experience with annoying adverts that don’t offer any value to people. The best adverts are ones that are highly relevant for the viewer because they are the right demographic. Many of us don’t mind being advertised to provided its the right type of advert and we find it helpful.
Video content that establishes your brand or personal brand as a thought leader is a very effective way of creating brand awareness and authority in your space. Sometimes this can be about putting individuals on camera to talk about their expertise in a particular field, sometimes it can be about positioning your business as a thought leader through releasing content that delves into your industry or the service you offer.
CRM software platform Hubspot do an amazing job of releasing huge volumes of content that talks about sales and marketing. For anyone trying to educate themselves about this topic, they are likely to come across Hubspot’s advice and guidance. It then becomes a natural fit to sign up to their platform to implement what they’ve learned. Mindfulness app Headspace do a great job of providing lots of content around mental health which reinforces their position as a brand that understands the daily struggles we all go through. And business coaching brand Dent, produce quantities of video content where their leadership team talk about the typical mistakes people make in business. This helps establish themselves as experts in this field.
Video content can work wonders for your personal brand and establishing the individual as a thought leader. This is not only very important for your own journey but it helps to propel your business forward. Big brands are turning more and more to bringing out the personal brands of the individuals at the business as much as small brands are relying on their leaders to lift their voice above the others.
We care more and more about the purpose and personality of the brands we buy from and faceless corporations are losing out in favour of brands where we feel invested in their journey. Look no further than the disruption going on in the tech sector with the explosion of apps like Airbnb, Uber and Revolut that are taking market share away from the giants. We don’t feel invested enough in the big corporates to give them our loyalty so when a company with a better story comes along to disrupt them, we’re happy to jump ship.
PR Stunts
Stunt based content can be a great way to create lots of buzz around your brand. Burger King did a great job of this recently with their “mouldy burger” campaign that showed how quickly their burger went mouldy after they removed artificial preservatives. For better or worse, it caused a huge media frenzy. Greggs are also masters of this with their recent Vegan sausage roll that they showcased using a video that made it look like an Iphone being unboxed. If the idea of the PR stunt is solid, then creating a film around it can do wonders for your brand.
Burger King Mouldy Whopper
Influencer Content
Making use of influencers is a great way to supercharge the reach of your content. Although the word “Influencer” has sprung up in recent years, the concept is nothing new. Brands have often sponsored celebrities to endorse their products and leverage their audience to increase reach. Now that mini-celebrities are popping up everywhere through the wonders of social media, its easier than ever to find an influencer that matches your company’s profile and who has the ear of the audience you want to reach.
Influencer marketing is a discipline it its own right and can be extremely successful. But consider doing more with your influencer strategy than just asking them to put a photo of your product on their Instagram feed. If you cook up a great idea for some content that features the Influencer or multiple influencers, you will create something that is far more engaging for their followers and a lot more eye catching. Influencers live for the fame and notoriety they are achieving and the income that generates. They want to be in the spotlight more than anything else because that’s how they make a living. If you elevate them by making them the stars in a piece of content, it will not only help their own journey but create more traction for your brand.
This is a bit of catch all term that applies to any content that a brand puts out. But in this context, I’m using it to refer to content that is created purely for viewer pleasure. This is content that either entertains, educates or informs. Its really the ultimate step in taking a video content first approach to marketing and can pay dividends in the long-term. Brands like Red Bull, Patagonia, and Volvo have all nailed an amazing branded content strategy where their YouTube channels have become a go-to destination for people looking to gorge on high quality, engaging content. The type of branded content you can be putting out ranges from documentaries to reality shows, creative animations to interactive video.
The world is your oyster when it comes to creating branded content and there are no limits to where you can go with it. The purpose of branded content is to position your brand as more than just the product you sell. Red Bull isn’t an energy drink, its about living to the extreme. Patagonia isn’t a sports clothing brand, its a way of life.
Beyond the examples listed above, there are a number of other ways you can use video for your brand that can help to tell your story in the right way. Behind-The-Scenes videos and Vlogging has started to gain a lot of popularity as a way to let people get insider perspective on your business. There’s an influencer marketing agency called Goat who have done this to great effect with daily vlogs documenting the comings and goings of their agency.
On fashion photography shoots, its very common to get some behind the scenes footage to supplement the photography piece. Crowdfunding is another great place to use video content and can be the difference between having a successful investment raise or not.
Creating videos for your business for the express purpose of approaching investors is also a great tool for overcoming their objections and starting conversations. Creating videos for trade shows, conferences, point of sale displays and even the company reception area can deliver great results. Filming key mile-stones and events at your business can help paint a picture of what you are all about. Video can be used to introduce individuals at the company in “Meet the Founder” or “Meet the Team” films. You can send videos messages to people via Email or Direct message where you talk directly to them and give them the personalised treatment. You can use video to recruit talent and on-board new staff members. You can use video as an instruction manual for your product or as a teaching tool for new customers.
The list really is endless. If you want to save time and communicate more effectively then think about how video can do that.
If you are looking for a video production company to support you with your next video project, then do get in touch
Explainer videos can be highly beneficial assets for your business, as they showcase exactly what you do and how you do it. But for a video explainer to pop and have the desired effect, the script needs to be just right. A great script clearly explains the contents of the video and gets people intrigued about your brand. A bad one can do the opposite.
But how do you write a killer explainer video script? Here at Small Films, we’ve put together a list of handy tips, so your script is more Hemingway and less text chat.
Why you need an explainer video script
The story is the heart of your explainer video, and it’s key to whether or not it will be a success. Of course, the story comes from the script, which acts as the foundation of your entire video explainer. Get the script right, and you can strike up an instant connection with your viewers as they understand your value proposition right off the bat.
A Small Films example of an animated explainer video
How to write a great video explainer script
Define your story
It’s easy to get carried away thinking about all the great things your brand offers and therefore you’ll want to include every one of them in your explainer. But diving straight in and trying to feature all your products or services probably won’t end well, leaving you with a convoluted message.
Instead, you should lay out your story in advance. Start by deciding on the key themes that you want to cover in the video. This could be a problem-solution led video that poses your company offering as the hero that makes your customer’s life that much easier.
Alternatively, it might be a process overview, which offers a how-to guide for your product or service. Whichever one you choose, you’ll want to provide a basic setup and payoff for the viewer, encouraging them to take action once it has finished.
Grab the viewers’ attention from the get-go
People have short attention spans, especially when it comes to interacting with a business online. Therefore, you don’t want to spend too long setting the scene. Instead, try aiming to draw them in and get their attention quickly.
Outline the problem they face from the very beginning, and get straight into the details. You only have a few seconds to capture their attention, and a video explainer isn’t the place to spend a significant amount of time building up the story.
Write words that bounce off the page
Writing a script isn’t like penning a blog post or other forms of written content. It’s created with the aim of a live performance. Therefore, the language needs to differentiate from your typical article.
Don’t try to sound too smart with complicated words – keep it simple and use words easily translated into visual actions and essentially come alive once spoken. Simple changes in dictation can really enhance your script. Your script shouldn’t be condescending or overly complicated and instead should sound conversational.
Speak to your viewer
Making something that could be seen by thousands of people sound personable can be tricky. But instead of thinking about all the people who will watch your video, write the script as if you’re talking to just one person.
Speak to your audience directly and look for opportunities to enhance your viewer’s experience. Write in a second-person voice, referring to them as “you”. It might seem like a minor tweak, but it can have a major impact on the audience.
Explain the how and why
The how and the why aspect of your video is the most important section, and it requires plenty of thought when it comes to writing it into the script. Share all the benefits, showing your audience how you solve a problem with your offering.
This section also needs the most energy, as it’s the part where you want to excite the viewer. Be selective about what you highlight and keep it concise. This is the section of the video that could invoke a buying decision, so give it the most time out of everything else in the video.
Don’t write more than needed
Explainer video scripts should be as long as they need to be and no longer. The average explainer video lasts for around 60 seconds, which roughly equates to 160-180 words. It doesn’t sound like much but gives you the chance to pen a watertight script.
And remember: those 60 seconds won’t be filled with words. You will also need to think about language, tone and pauses throughout the script. That’s why you should keep it to 180 words maximum, even though the voice actor can perform up to 240 words per minute.
Internal or external?
You may also deliberate over whether to write the script in-house or use an external company. In-house is the cheaper option, but unless you have professional scriptwriters working for you, it’s worth exploring using an external company.
A professional video company will aid the process along the way, asking you to fill out a brief. This is designed to help you think about your business from a different perspective and define what matters most.
They will take that brief and turn it into a watertight script that highlights the best parts of your business and resonates with customers. So before deciding to write the script in-house, it’s worth exploring external options before making a decision.
The right script for your explainer video
If you nail the script for your explainer video, you can expect a positive response from viewers. And by following our tips, you’ll have a strong chance of writing an explainer video script that conveys your message and gets people watching with interest and interacting with your brand.
An infographic showing how to write an explainer video script
Interested in learning more about Explainer Videos? Read our other blogs
George Hughes is the Founder and Creative Director of Small Films in London, UK. His debut book “Resonance: Unleash your Brand’s Potential with Video” is a number 1 bestseller on Amazon and is recognised as a leading authority on how businesses can master their video marketing strategy. George comes from a 14-year career in the television industry directing for an array of networks from the BBC to the Discovery Channel. He went on to found the video production agency Small Films, and for the last 6 years has been creating video advertising campaigns and branded content for an array of brands, from Aldi supermarket to disruptive startups like Lick Paint.
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